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The Trial of William Wallace

William Wallace of Renfrew (born in about 1270), had managed to rally his disparate Scottish countrymen against the strict rule of England. There was a void amongst the Scottish royalty since 1286 and a bitter family dispute over who should be King divided the land.

The English King, Edward I, seized upon the opportunity to march into Scotland and add to his land's holdings. In 1296, after brutal massacres, his troops brought the Scottish noblemen to their knees.

Edward I then instituted a reign of terror in Scotland, sending English officials into clan territory, run the government and to hold all positions of public authority. While the English were resented by the Scots, their noblemen continued their squabbling.

The "High Treason"

In this context, Wallace had killed an English sheriff in Lanark and he had managed to rally the local men into a small fighting unit. When word of the revolt spread, Wallace's army quickly grew by the hundreds and then by the thousands. Wallace and his motley crew marched upon English strongholds in Scotland and captured them one by one, always with fatal results to their English defenders.

When his army was finally defeated in 1298, Wallace went into hiding. Scotland was an easy place to hide in spite of the English military occupation. Forests of the highlands were thick and all of the clans, the peasants and even many of the noblemen of Scotland considered Wallace to be a national hero, not a villain.

In 1304, a new Scottish King had been appointed with the approval of King Edward I. Clemency was granted to many of the Scottish noblemen that had supported Wallace's uprising; but not to Wallace. A bounty was placed on his head. He was finally captured in Glasgow on August 3, 1305, betrayed by a fellow Scotsman, Ralph Rae, a prisoner-of-war of Wallace's routed army, that the English had released on condition that he lead them to Wallace.

The Trial

Edward I had actually instituted many legal reforms in England, some of which still stand today. It was during his era that the professions of "barrister" and "solicitor" were spawned. He also supervised the development of civil procedures and extensive laws on property. But justice meant little when it came to the William Wallace. One medieval historian's account shows the contempt for which not only Edward I, but also the English people held the Scottish patriot:

"William Wallace, a runaway from righteousness, a robber, a committer of sacrilege, an arsonist and a murderer, more cruel than Herod and more debauched in his insanity than Nero."

Wallace was given no legal rights or privileges. His trial and punishment were typical of law and order in the medieval ages. It stands as an example of primitive justice systems including government-approved barbarism which is all but extinct today in England.

Edward wanted Wallace's fate to serve as a example to any remaining Scottish insurgents. Bound, Wallace was marched through England in the middle of summer reaching London on August 22, where he was ceremoniously paraded to the heart of the city, as if he were a sort of military trophy.

On August 23rd, 1305, in London, William Wallace was brought before a bench of noblemen in Westminster Hall. With Edward I a block or two away in his palace, and keenly waiting the result, the conviction was a matter of formality and the "court", a kangaroo court.

English law is nothing if not thick in formalities. With Wallace in chains, without a lawyer, and likely exhausted, a long and detailed indictment was read. It set out all his military victories and the execution of many English prisoners-of-war. The public galleries were full.

Justice mattered little to the bench, no doubt acting on Edward's direct orders. Wallace was not allowed to speak, to speak to defend himself or his actions and the sentence was read.

Wallace did try to speak out at one point. Records show that he yelled out that he admitted all the charges against him except treason. How could he be guilty of high treason if he had never sworn allegiance to the King of England?

This defence was valid but of little avail to the bloodthirsty bench of medieval English judges. Revenge and deterrence mattered more than justice.

The death sentence was read inclusing the dreaded words, that he was to be drawn and quartered. Wallace was stripped naked, dragged outside and tied to a team of horses, where he was pulled to a field outside of the city walls, jeered along the way, onto the grounds of the St. Bartholomew Hospital. A massive crowd cheered on as the executioners followed the ptotocol for drawing and quartering. They first hanged him until he was semi-conscious. Then he was tied down on his back and, while still alive, his genitals were cut off and his stomach opened. His intestines were pulled out and burned, all while he still lived. The point was (if there was any point other than legal pyscopathy) was for him to be conscious and to experience and see his entrails being pulled out.

Finally and mercifully, he was beheaded. "A cruel yet fully deserved death," wrote an observer.

Edward was not yet finished with Wallace. As an added deterrent, he ordered Wallace's body cut in four and the pieces brought to cities at the four corners of Britain, where they were displayed. Hence, the quartering. Wallace's head was tarred for preservation and impaled high on the spikes at London Bridge where it would hang as a public warning, until the crows and the weather caused the shredded human remains to drop into the river below.

Barbaric, medieval justice would continue to prevail in England, with the most despicable sentences reserved for those, such as Wallace, convicted of acts which threatened the King's authority. And yet, all countries at that time sanctioned similar punishment on their convicted citizens.

Where education was rare, lawlessness and anarchy had to be checked and deterred - that was the policy of the English elite. In the equation, the life of a peasant convict mattered little.

Within a few centuries, England would desist from cruel and unusual punishment setting afoot a movement all modern nations now abide by.

Wallace is not now and may never be forgotten imn Scotland where he is considered to be a political saint. Memorials dot Scotland in his "honourrrrrr", but perhaps most poignant is the memorial (pictured) which now hangs near the site of his death in London. The Latin inscription reads:

LAWimage

Duhaime Lawisms

At the moment of live birth there does exist a human being entitled to the fullest protection of the law. The most basic right enjoyed by every human being is the right to
life itself.
Justice David Roberts, Maine Medical Center v Houle, Superior Court of Cumberland (ME, USA)1974

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Unless otherwise noted, this article was written by Lloyd Duhaime, Barrister, Solicitor, Attorney and Lawyer (and Notary Public!). It is not intended to be legal advice and you would be foolhardy to rely on it in respect to any specific situation you or an acquaintance may be facing. In addition, the law changes rapidly and sometimes with little notice so from time to time, an article may not be up to date. Therefore, this is merely legal information designed to educate the reader. If you have a real situation, this information will serve as a good springboard to get legal advice from a lawyer.